The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1887-02-07
WORSE THAN INFERNO.
nonnlnLr RAILWAY DISASTER

I, - u I.t.
Near White River Junction, vern,o ont-Fo,,,
coaehcs Fall From n bridge md After. !
| wards Take Fire-Over Forty People
| orsmnted-Iisartrendlns Scenes.
WHITE RIVER JUNCTION, W., Feb. g.
No disaster moro appalling III ita happen
ingu, more awful in its consequences, III
recorded in tho annals Of Now England
railroading than that. which occurred nj
$50 o'clock this morning on tho Central
Vermont Railroad at White River bridge,
In the town Of Endon, about four milea
weat Of that junction. BY 1.-THE four rear
cars Of the Montreal express, bearing Now
York, Springfield and Boston excursion.
ista to the Montreal carnival, were hurled
from tho track by broken rail, while
running at speed OF forty miles an hour,
and were precipitated, together with a
600.foot Howe truss bridge, down seventy
feet into a wild, dark and rocky gorge.
There they struck with an awful crashtop
thg m lEoSsa surface OF the White river. Al Z
Tho Hcene which followed was probably
never equaled IN any one Of the long
series ol disasters Which have blaCkered
ths Iecord OF American railroads. The
splnterod wreck took tire, aud the flames
loaped In the darkness In demouiacal
revel. The groanB Of the dying, mingled
with the heart.reuding shrieks OF their
companions who were suffering the pangs
ol live.cremasion. Dazsd, half naked and
Wounded, the survivors wGre crawling
along Ice hoes and snow drifts In tenn
pefatufe many degrees below zero, be-.
seecnlng alu from the halt dozen rough
farmers 1, VINO soon appeared on the scene.
The advancing flames drove back the
Woulu.oe rescuers, and tho odor OF Eurn.
ana s thara 'ot l,a,t .Vo' Ha Tue ar. Hera
wounds stopped by frosapp pSo' ii" ".1 II
lay on the snow with face nm.
turned to the stars and, in one
snort hour, before even q wrecking train
rom THIS junction reached the scene, the
wreck was entirely consumed, only q pile
ol p!acKened, moulder!ng tlmbess being
ieH 70 marx the spot waere at least 40
lives had neen sactlilced. On improvised
cats IN the ba2sageaor smoking cars or on
the lloor Oh neighhorng farm house, lay
perhaps ~ OF the badly injured, some
breathing their last, some under the SER
geon's knlie and several suffering, in ad.
uluon 10 their own pain, the agony ol
aoui consequent ot5haying Sseen friends
or relatives perish before their own eyes,
Whsn The grey morn dawne1 26 charred
and unIeco9gn!zable bodies lay on the ice
oy the bridge site. The scene was proba-
by more truthtully and leconically des-
crlbed by Frank Winsch, New York
drummer, who survived, when he said,
With blanched countenanca and staring
~ tue reporter: ut looked like the In.
lerno." # Y,JIg u& 55izs EgEJG!, ~
ArATHETlc SCENE. ~
One Of the wrecked cars on the leo has
not vet been ovarhenlod and q :, .houes, -, !,
49,. ~ -. ON !, ' ,."ss' az. :. - 'nousus
.ns' az iea7' " ooo'es are In the debris.
Would this prove 80, it will run the list OF
Killed up to over 60. This will not in
clude those which may have been carried
into the river through the ice. The latest
computation as to the number Of persona
on the train, places it at over 100. When
the last car on the ice is overhauled to.
morrow, aud further Identification tukes
place, more complete list Of the killed
VII! be obtalnsble, although 1t is thought
that score Of the bodies already recov-
cred are SO dlsfigured by being crushed
and burned as to preclude any possibility
OF being identified. Many OF the survivors
! will probably die Of their wounds. Con.
sidering the height from which the cars
fell, and the speed which the train was
running, it is regarded as miraculous thst
any one on board escaped. IS
One Of the first passengers to escspe
from the burning wreck was Joseph
Magnet, a French Canadian boy. lie
was with his father, David Magnet, on
their way from Holyoke TO their home in
canada. The boy sat three seats behiad
his father IN the third car, from the rear.
He was dezing in his seat, when he felt
the Ger shiver. This motion was kept UP
Tor lev seconds, and then tho car dashed
over the bridge upon the ice. BY hard
work tho boy succeeded In getting out CT
one OF the windows. He at once went in
search OF his father, and discovered him
by the.light Of the burning wreck iust
above him, pinned down by part OF tho
top Of the car, which had fallen direc.ly
across his chest and legs. The old man
was as firmly held asit in wise. Joseph
Was WAS me on'y ono who escaped
ed to his istbsr's al sa,s. assistane. ne fusn, amn
spoke words Of ENCOURAGEMENT
to him: The father was very cool, and
nnss;h1a rU,a ms s9h 70 nelp nm out as soon as
arnau'ei w;.h ~ p9y seazeu nis iatnsr and
httusgleu with all nus strength to exsrlcato
nlai' pas IN VAN. me names we're np'
fa.hoa ptGacn'ns a1 fapiaiy. Joseph SAID the
ia.hel, p.tsL,. iuh xs anu anu get an axe or q saw"
mn' o. tSs, eoula Hos ~ hnd either Pei!